


you are so beautiful, yet so unaware

by FugsleyStrudel



Category: Original Work
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst and Romance, Bittersweet Ending, Falling In Love, Friends to Lovers, Growth, Love, Other, Personal Growth, Slow Romance, Tragic Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-18
Updated: 2021-03-26
Packaged: 2021-03-27 17:27:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,401
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30126291
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FugsleyStrudel/pseuds/FugsleyStrudel
Summary: romeo and juliet, considered the epitome of a love story. though, it ends in death. this is a story of love written in the same notion. between two who deserve it yet do not. a paradox such is love.
Relationships: Original Female Character(s)/Original Non-Binary Character(s)
Kudos: 2





	1. you are so beautiful, yet so unaware (0)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the mysterious relationship between the two begins, or has it already?

They peeled off their shirt and let it fall to the ground, watching it as it fell down and rested on the grey stone surrounding them. Their body glistened occasionally because of the moonlight falling upon them, resembling that of a shining gemstone such as topaz or smokey quartz.

Countless thoughts were running through her mind at the current moment, “Where did they take her?”. “Why are they stripping in front of her?, “How did I end up agreeing to be taken out to such a location like this when it is so late?” but the question that is constantly running throughout her mind, “Why did I decide that getting swept up by this person and their charm was a good idea?”

The person standing in front of her, half-naked, finally turned and looked her directly in her eyes. Their eyes trying to break apart and learn everything they can about her. She hated that look of theirs; she hated how naked and vulnerable she was around them.

They chuckled and it turned into a smirk; they knew exactly how she felt about when they read her like an open book and her reactions were priceless.

“Calm down my love,” The person walked closer to her, and with every step, her heart started to beat faster and faster, “You know I would never intentionally be a nuisance to you.”

The woman could not help but stare as the person walked in her direction. They were not built in such an extravagant way. Their body was that of an average person. Yet, the signs of muscles on their body as they flexed while walking pulled her in. The faint traces of abs that is on their stomach put her in a bewildered state. The stretch marks on their shoulders made her have an insatiable curiosity about the person standing in front of her. Everything about them she loved, and she hated that she did.

“I am not your love. How many times will I have to tell you that?” She knew she had to respond quickly otherwise she would fall for the trick they are playing. “Just hurry up and show me the secret you had for me.”

The person stopped their stride right before their body collided with hers. The two were extremely close and the person knew that. They started playing with her hair, “You know, have I told you how much I love your hair? The black truly suits your complexion.”

“You tell me this often. Get to the point.”

They chuckled once again, this time, louder than before. “God, I truly do love you.” As they were talking, their hands had traveled from her hair and towards her body. “Are you sure you are fine with what is about to happen?”

She looked into their eyes willing for once, “Of course. I already told you if we are going to do this I want to experience the real thing.”

They did not say or do anything for a moment, thinking, “Well, if this is truly what you want, I must oblige to my love.”

“I said-“ However, before she could finish her sentence, her shirt was flying off her body and she was struck with a deep and passionate kiss.

✾


	2. you are so beautiful, yet so unaware (1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the beginning of the end

The sound of pens and pencils marking up papers echoed through the lecture hall. If one were to concentrate and focus hard enough on this room alone, they would be able to feel the clogs of the various brains in the room working in order to finish the exam that was currently taking place.

However, there were a few who simply were not using their brain to those lengths, rather, waiting for this exam to be done with so they could head back to their dorms or home. One of these waiting to be let out was a woman by the name of Neha.

Neha was an astounding, grandiose, and all-around perfect student. She prepares diligently for everything that school has to throw at her. On the surface, everyone sees her as this figurehead that every student strives to be. To some, it seems everything always works in her favor somehow. This might be true to some extent, but Neha is a hard-working individual who has worked for everything she has ever gotten. 

She watches over the rest of the students working and thought to herself, “Did I finish that fast? Well to be fair, I did study plenty this time around.” 

Neha chuckles silently to herself as she tooted her own horn. It is true though, she put hours into researching this topic and going over previous notes. It only makes sense that she did this well.

While being her own support, as usual, Neha noticed that there were two others who were finished as well. She was surprised, not by others finishing, she expected that from one of the two. It has only been a few months since this semester started but she knew the blonde hair man well enough. After all, she considered him her only rival so to say. Maxwell Grieves. He was truly someone she considered to be a “friend” one would say. If you looked past all their bickering and arguments then their friendship would definitely be seen.

However, the other person who finished, she has barely paid much attempt at getting to know. They were known around the school though, as this college we are attending has smaller classes than the usual amount you would normally see. This means there are about 15 students or so in each class. Back to the topic though, this person was known simply as Ivory. No one knew their last name or much about them besides the fact they said, “I do not believe in gender. Fuck that shit. Just refer to me as they.”

After that, we did not hear much come from them. Most people were scared to interact with them because of the aura they gave off or their appearance. They dressed in black clothing mainly of varying materials. On certain days they looked quite approachable with black corduroy pants and jacket on with a normal turtleneck or they would come in and wear a dress as well. They switched from feminine and masculine clothing often but there some outfits that feature tons of chains and accessories with makeup that others might consider to be too much.

To put a cherry on top, they have a tongue piercing as well. Though, she does not see anything wrong with that or them. They seem interesting enough, but Neha just does not have a reason to talk or speak with them. The two exchange nods but that is it.

The interesting thing though, they finished quickly as well. Usually, they would be one of the last people to be stuck in the lecture halls but today was different. They surprised me, that much is true.

As if they knew they were being watched and pondered about, Ivory looks in the direction of Neha and makes direct eye contact with her.

“What the hell? Did they notice I was looking at them? Why are they just staring at me…with those eyes…” Neha thought to herself as she did not know how to react to the sudden look Ivory gave her. Those eyes of theirs seemed to be all over her entire body, looking to learn everything they can about her. These eyes made her feel like an open book that was being read easily.

Neha quickly broke eye contact and returned to just waiting for everyone to finish. However, she heard a light chuckle amidst all of the pens and pencils writing. Blood started to rush to her face, as she started to overthink and assume Ivory was laughing at her for staring at her. 

“I am so damn stupid. Why would I blatantly stare at someone? Actually, I could salvage this. There is no need to blame yourself for anything Neha.” 

After thinking things over, Neha realized that she could just talk with Ivory after class and let them know that they are not a creep or anything. She smiled at her idea but then started to ponder about other things, “Why do I care that much about what others think?”

She tapped the table she was sitting at with her pencil and thought over things until time passed and everyone was finally finished with the exam.  


✾  
“Alright everyone, good work today!” The professor of the class spoke up after collecting all the exams. “You all only have one more week until you are officially off for the break. I sure hope you all spend your time off well.”

All the students in the room started to gather their things as the professor spoke, paying her only half their attention as they were rushing to leave. 

Neha was doing the same as everyone else while talking to her friends, “No, I am free for my break. My family is busy, so I won’t see them for a while.”

One woman that was finished packing and waiting for her friends spoke up, “Then we MUST do something together. All four of us.”

The woman that just spoke up was one of Neha’s closer friends, Kisoo. The two have been friends since high school and have been inseparable since. They do not share many classes together, but they make it work and still have an amazing friendship. They have been through thick and thin together and are closer than the two realize. That is just how intricate their friendship is. 

“Neha barely hangs out with us and is spending all her time kissing her books or whatever! We should do ice skating or like, rent a movie theater out and do whatever inside!” Kisoo went off listing off various ideas that she had thought about before now. “What about the mall! The mall is always a great choice I say.”

Neha just smiled as she listened to all of her friends talk together; there was just something great about moments like these. She was content.

All of a sudden, Neha heard her name called. “May Neha Kaur stay behind for a moment after class as well. I have something that I need to ask of her.”

Neha was confused for a moment; she did not do anything to warrant being questioned by her professor. As far as she knows at least.

Her friends started to playfully tap her and make jokes, “The perfect Neha has finally gotten in trouble?” was one of the main ones being thrown around.

“Just go ahead of me guys. Let’s talk later so we can make up a plan for the break.”

They nodded and went out of the class, leaving just Neha and her professor alone. She does not know the reason behind why she was being called to stay behind class, but it then hits her that she was supposed to speak with Ivory after this class and clear her name. She had to hurry with this conversation and find them quickly before she lost them.

“So, what do you need me for miss?” Neha was speaking quickly and getting her words out faster than normal to hurry to find Ivory.

“Woah Ms. Kaur, I know your break is soon but no need to rush that fast to get out of here.” The professor chuckles as she spoke.

Neha just sighs and tries to explain herself, “I know. I just need to do something after class, and I don’t know how much time I have left to do that thing.”

“Well, if that’s the case, then let me tell you what I asked you here for. I am giving you another chance to perfect this.” The professor pulls out what seems to be an essay and shows it to Neha. “This is your analysis on Romeo and Juliet. Perfect as any of your other assignments but it is missing something. The information is there but it lacks in the way you showcase it in your writing. Essentially, it is missing the needed emotions to finish it.” 

Neha just stared at the essay, dumb folded. She was confused as to how it is not considered “perfect”. She understands that not everything can be perfect of course but from what she heard from her professor, it is not complete. It is as if it is halfway done. She could not stand for this.

“Whatever the catch is, I am doing it over.” Neha spoke up after gathering all of her thoughts.

The teacher fiddles around the papers until she finds a different essay that belonged to someone else. “I knew you would be up to the challenge. If you are able to rewrite it to a higher degree than before, I will end up giving you extra credit.” She then hands Neha the papers she found earlier. “If you need help with it you should contact Ivory. They crafted the perfect analysis of the story. It almost brought a tear to my eye.”

Neha just stood even more confused than before. She was asking someone else for help? Her pride felt as if it was being attacked by countless halberds. It must be some weird luck or fate was playing with her life like a board game; she now had to meet Ivory, the one she never thought much of, for help? She just smiles to herself and grabs the paper.

“Oh, they did? Well, thank you for the information. I will make sure to contact them and get this new writing to you as soon as possible.”

The professor smiled at Neha and went to organizing her desk. “That is good, there is no rush though. You have something you have to attend to as well though? The thing that made you rush earlier?”

Neha took the papers and sorted them in the proper way. “Of course, miss. Thank you for this.” She gathered all of her belongings and made her way out of the classroom, 

“Ivory whatever your last name is. I will find you and question the hell out of you even if it is the last thing I will do.” Neha thought to herself as she made her way down the halls, thinking of the rest of the days will go.


	3. you are so beautiful, yet so unaware (2)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the goal of change begins

The sound of metal keys rang out throughout the halls as Neha fiddled with her key ring to unlock her dorm door. She had just finished her last class for today and was assigned an extra credit assignment. In most cases, Neha would aim to finish the assignment the day it is given and have an easy day ahead of her. However, there is a stark difference between her current assignment and all the others she has tackled before. She needed to request help from a student she barely speaks to; she needed to find the elusive student Ivory.

Neha just sighed softly to herself. Of course she was worried about how all of this would play out. For one, she barely talks to this person and as far as she knows no one talks to them. They keep to themselves and has barely said a word in class. Secondly, there is no way she knows for sure they will help her. Most normal people would not help someone they have never talked to before. She was worried about so much currently but deep down, she did not want to give up. It just was not the way she was raised. Neha would just have to try her hardest as usual to find Ivory first. Luckily though, she is not alone in this search.

After finally finding the correct key, Neha inserted it into the lock and turned it. Opening the door and seeing her best friend, Kisoo, sitting at her desk with her earphones in, ignoring Neha’s struggle at the door.

Kisoo turned around as she heard the faint noise of the door opening. “Neha! You’re finally here. It took you ages to get to your own dorm? I hope you didn’t get lost again like last time.”

Neha closed the door and chuckled to herself as Kisoo brought up the incident when they first moved into the dorms. “It was my first time here. It’s only natural I get lost!”

Kisoo spun around in the chair, a bright grin on her face. “Well, you didn’t see me or anyone else get lost on our first trips here, did you?”

Falling softly onto her bed, Neha laid as she talked to her best friend. “Anyways, you know why I texted you to come to my dorm right?”

“If I get the gist of things, yeah. You got an extra credit assignment and now you need to find that one student named Ivory. Only issue, we know next to nothing about this person.”

“Good. You actually read through my texts this time for once. You make me oh so happy, bestie.”

Kisoo puts her hands up in a quick motion and starts speaking fast. “Woah there. You know I can barely pay attention to these textbooks. Text messages aren’t any different.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say. Even if you’re passing your classes without major issues.”

“We can talk about how smart I am later. Now would be good honestly.” Kisoo puts her hand to her chin as if she was actually considering the option.

“Nice try, but your former statement was the correct one. We have to find a way to find Ivory or at least contact him.”

Kisoo spun her chair around once again, facing back towards Neha’s desk and grabs a notepad. “While you were taking your sweet time to get here, I was writing down possible ways that you can track this person down.” Kisoo hands Neha the notepad she was writing on.

Neha starts to examine all of the ideas that Kisoo was suggesting. “You want me to stalk him after classes and learn his schedule like that?”

“Well, it is a possible method. Just cause it is weird doesn’t mean you can’t do it!”

“I already made a fool of myself earlier with them. I don’t want them thinking I’m a creep or anything.”

Neha just shook her head no at Kisoo and continued reading over the list. “Maxwell? Why is his name just on here by itself?”

Kisoo jumps in her chair with excitement, or at least some form of happiness. “You walked in as I was writing that one so I couldn’t finish but that’s your best lead! Maxwell talked about Ivory once.”

“He did? That’s weird. It wasn’t anything rude or something right? You know Maxwell can be extremely straight forward at times.”

“No! Quite the opposite! If I remember correctly they had a project together once.”

Neha looked down and thought about this new information. It was most likely a different class than the one that all three of them were in together because she feels that she would remember something like this. 

“Not that it truly matters. This makes things so much easier.” Neha though to herself, then she spoke to Kisoo. “All we have to do is ask Maxwell to give us his contact information then.”

Kisoo was already on her phone typing by the time Neha had got the last words. “Now, all we have to do is wait for his response. Shouldn’t take less than a minute considering how fast he responds back.”

Neha just nodded and understood what Kisoo meant. Maxwell responds abnormally fast usually. It as if he is always on his phone at all times.

Kisoo’s phone buzzed in her hand and she checked the message from Maxwell. “That’s...odd.”

“What? Thats Maxwell right?” Neha was confused by what her friend meant by “odd”.

“It is him, yes, and I asked him if can tell me Ivory’s number if he has it. He then just responded with ‘No.’ Nothing else.”

“What? He is usually quite cooperative with most things.”

Kisoo snorted and laughed to herself. “Yeah, when it comes to you. He could careless about if anyone else needs something from him.”

Neha then fell into thought. Perhaps what her friend was telling her was true but she thought that there was more to it. Why would he be unwilling to just spare a number? There had to be more at play here.

“I just got an idea!” Kisoo then typed on her phone, writing a response to Maxwell’s last text. Her phone then buzzed not even minutes later. 

“See, I am so smart. Got the dorm number too? What would you do without me bestie.”

“How did you make him change his mind so easily? You didn’t threaten him did you?”

“I feel hurt that you thought I would do that! I considered it but all I did was say, ‘Neha REALLY needs it. Like, otherwise she may die a bloody, tragic death. Hemorrhages. That stuff.’”

Neha just stared at her friend and questioned her morality. “Well, at least my own bloody death helped us. We know where he is at least.”

Kisoo sat her phone and just claps her hands. “Exactly! Neha’s death was tragic and she won’t be forgotten but we found our person now! Win, win.”

“My death is a win win to you?”

Kisoo stood up and grabbed Neha’s arm, dragging her from off the bed. “Of course not! Now, lets go find your mystery person!”

✾

Neha and Kisoo stood in front of a normal wooden dorm door. They had no idea what they were to expect from someone they barely know, even if they were just a normal college student, as far as they know at least. Naturally, they were on guard because of all of this. If everything went south, they told Maxwell where they were going, despite him saying to not get involved with Ivory. They had no idea what Maxwell could have against Ivory but they marched on nonetheless.

Kisoo stood awkwardly in front of the door. “So. You’re going to knock first right? This entire thing was your choice after all. I’m merely only an accomplice.”

Neha bowed her head and sighed. “Fine. I know you’re horrible at confronting people. I’ll do it myself.”

Neha picked her head up and brought her fist to the door, knocking.

For a moment, it felt like time itself had been distorted. The two friends felt seconds as if they were minutes, minutes as if they were hours, and so on. The whole weight of the situation hit them and they realized they truly had no prior idea of what this person could act like. Their anxiety started to kick itself into overdrive and they started worrying about every single little detail.

Neha tried to calm herself. She realized she would get no where with the way she was currently acting. It was then a thought popped in her head and she spoke aloud, “Wait, what if they aren’t in their dorm currently?”

Before Kisoo could even get the chance to respond to her friend, the door opened and the entire aura of the world felt like it changed. “Well, what if they were in their dorm currently?”

There stood the person they were searching for, opening the door and leaning on the frame. The two stood there staring at them. Neha and Kisoo did not fully plan what they were going to do out. They had a basic idea that they formulated but it was not detailed enough.

Ivory just stared back at the two women. There was a brief silence until they spoke once again, “Well, come in. You are obviously here for a reason and I am always hospitable to my guests.” They moved out the way of the door frame to let the two in.

Kisoo grabbed Neha’s hand and shuffled in as fast as they could without causing too much chaos. Ivory closed the door behind them and as soon as they did, the two women understood the earlier sensation they felt when the door was open. Ivory’s room felt like a totally different world.

For one, there was no natural lights currently in the room. There were windows of course but they were covered by blackout curtains that stopped most sunlight from getting in. Instead of relying on that, Ivory has low dimmed artificial lights that are placed on his walls and other places in the room. This design choice gave the room a much more comfortable, cozy, and personal atmosphere.

Besides the obvious lighting choices, there was rug placed on the ground as well. It was near impossible to tell since they both were wearing shoes, but Neha would guess it was made of silk or some other material similar to silk. 

There was so much more to the room such as the tapestry that was on one side of the wall and on the other were various vinyl albums that were hanging. The final thing that made this place so different was the smell. It was amazing. It reminded Neha of cinnamon.

The smell was so abundant but somehow it was not overpowering any of her senses. The ambrosial scent would flow into her nostrils and make her want to smell more. She realized she was so focused on the smell of the room that she did not notice that Ivory was right there calling to her.

“Is your friend alright there? She seems to mesmerized by her own thoughts.” Ivory was now sitting on a chair that was at their desk. They were trying to ask Neha a question but she was lost to her thoughts.

Kisoo chuckled and grabbed Neha by the arm now, shaking her. “She’s fine! Look, she’ll respond now. Right Neha?”

Neha grounded herself and looked towards Ivory’s direction. “Yes, I’m fine. Thanks for asking but I’ll be quick since I don’t want to work you too much.” Neha then looks them dead in the eyes. “Ivory, lend me your help.”


	4. you are so beautiful, yet so unaware (3)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a catalyst is made

The ticking of a clock that was plastered someplace on the wall was the only thing Neha could hear as she stared at Ivory's deep dark brown eyes. It was not an awkward feeling that she was experiencing, like beforehand. This moment felt almost tranquil, compared to the time Neha first made eye contact with Ivory during the exam; this moment was much more- normal. Neha could only describe this moment as something normal and nothing else. She paid attention to the features of Ivory as her mind started to wander and look for things to focus on.

Ivory's expressions were hard to read or pindown to some specific emotion or feeling. They felt like a book that seemed to never end; a book that had a continuous story with no proper end. Neha struggled to put her thoughts into words but the person in front of her was just that harder to put into words for her. Neha decided that she would not get much anywhere just staring at this person. 

Neha cleared her throat, attempting to speak again and ask Ivory if they had heard her, but he was the first one to respond. "You are asking me for help? It seems I did not do a good enough job." Ivory fiddled with their fingers as they were in their lap, sitting with their right leg laying across on their lap. "I did not expect anyone in our classes to ask me for help on anything, for various reasons."

Neha did not understand what they meant by "I did not do a good enough job", she was confused at what Ivory was trying to say with that phrase. However, she understood the latter part of their sentence perfectly. "You must think you do not produce good enough work to be asked for help?"

The words that fell from Neha's mouth were what caused the first change in expression from Ivory. Neha noticed beforehand that she could not get a good read on Ivory but now there was something that was obvious. They were interested. "Just how did you come to that conclusion I wonder?" They laid back in the chair as they spoke, ar leaning back on the chair as well. Ivory was smirking; they found whatever Neha asked truly so interesting.

Neha was getting tired of standing and she realized that Kisoo must also be awkward as she was horrible at meeting new people even if she tried her best at putting an act. She sat down with Kisoo on Ivory's bad and as soon as she did, Kisoo rushed and latched onto Neha's arm for comfort. Neha just smiled softly to herself and continued her conversation with Ivory. "Well, you don't give me much to work with but I can only tell because I know how you feel; I know how that feels."

"Oh? Is that so?" Ivory changed their position in the chair, arm no longer leaning on the back of the chair but rather resting on their thighs as their hands were intertwined together. "I would have never expected someone such as yourself to share in my incompetence. After all, you are seen as a major figurehead in our class."

Every time Neha heard Ivory spoke, all she could feel was the sense of peculiarity radiate off the words they would say. Chalking it up to just them being peculiar is not the right idea, it is rather, she just could not yet understand them well enough. "Well I might be seen as some queen or something but that doesn't mean I don't have my fair share of troubles. We all can experience incompetence you know."

Ivory looks up at the ceiling of their room for a moment. "Intriguing," They bring their head back down and they are smiling. "Well, I have not even introduced myself. I am Ivory. It is a pleasure to meet you both." Ivory formally introduced themself, keeping that same smile on his face.

"Of course. You seem to already know us but I am Neha and this is my best friend Kisoo. Don't mind how she has barely spoken, she is very introverted around new people." Kisoo waved using her free arm and say a meek hello to Ivory.

Ivory just chuckles to themself and continues leading the conversation for now. "You two are quite a fascinating pair of friends I must say. I digress though. Neha, you asked for my help in something before we ended up getting distracted."

"Yes, I did ask you for your help with something. Right after the latest exam we just had together, our professor called me back and told me my analysis on Romeo and Juliet was not 'complete'." Neha realized that she did not bring the papers with her but she did not think that it was truly that necessary. After all, all she came here for was tips on how Ivory was able to create something that was referred to as perfect. They had to understand something that flew past Neha's mind when she was researching and reading over everything. "Anyways, to make a long story short, she told me to contact you as your paper is what she considered perfect."

For a moment, Ivory just had a confused look on his face. "A Romeo and Juliet analysis? We did something like that? I honestly can not for the life of me remember that." Ivory was expending all the resources in their brain, synapses flaring every second. "Oh wait! Yes! I remember now! It is funny she said that considering I almost turned that in late because I forgot entirely about it."

Kisoo was the one to finally speak up this time. "Wait...so you're saying that you quite literally did that entire thing last minute? Yet, it still is held to such a high degree by our professor?"

Ivory just nods but then shakes their head until it starts to look like a mix of yes and no. "Well, I wish I could be able to do something of that magnitude. However, from the moment it was assigned to us I had already made a basic rough draft in my head. All that I needed to do was read that damned story over again and research to fill in the holes of knowledge I did not have myself. I just- waited. When I say that I waited, I mean I WAITED." 

"You seem incredibly smart to do all of that and create something that our professor called perfect. So, why don't you do this for every assignment? Using your brain to such a degree." Kisoo was questioning Ivory's behavior. As far as everyone knew, Ivory was just a student who did not try that much in class but was still passing. No one thought much about it since as long as you are passing, there is no real issue. However, Kisoo just felt that Ivory could be doing better than what they are doing now.

There was a brief pause before Ivory spoke. They were thinking of how to properly form their reply without giving too much away and they decided with something simple, "That I cannot say. Personal reasons. We did just meet after all."

Kisoo sighed and shook her head. She understood what Ivory was talking about. Kisoo and Neha were just strangers to him; strangers who just shared a class or two together. It is completely understandable for Ivory to have that type of response but she could not kill her curiosity. There had to be a reason why they were not trying their best. Why did they all of a sudden decide to create something considered perfect now and not before? Perhaps she was just overthinking things and stressing over this will only bring her wrinkles faster. It will not matter anyway, as after this she and Neha will not talk to them again.

"Well! It was wonderful to hear your friend's voice! It suits her," Kisoo just laughed softly as she held onto Neha's arm, Ivory continuing to talk, "But we need to talk about the main thing you came here for I presume. Romeo and Juliet." Ivory clears their throat and begins speaking in a more serious tone. "So, from my understanding, our professor describes my paper as 'perfect' and in order to 'complete' your paper, she sent Neha to me to explain what I did right? My only question is, how is your paper not considered complete."

"That is the part I am struggling with personally. I don't understand a thing she told but from what I got from what she said, I am missing emotions," Neha recalled what the professor said to her and continued, "All the information is correct but the way I presented it just lacked emotions."

Ivory took another brief pause before they spoke, constructing and forming the words into the proper response. "Okay, what I am going to say may seem off-topic but you must stick with me. Neha Kaur, have you ever experienced true love? I do not mean the love you have for your parents or your friend Kisoo either. I mean, the feeling of true love towards your significant other."

Neha started to feel the blood rush to her cheeks as she was asked such a personal question out of nowhere. She had no clue what Ivory was to gain from asking this question but they knew she was going to feel this way as they prefaced it with them saying, "it might seem off-topic". "Well- I mean- no? I don't know really how to describe true love. I dated people but it was never nothing serious." Neha truly did not know how to word her response to the question Ivory asked her. She has had people she dated but they never lasted to be something she considered true love. 

Ivory just nods. They did not have a pause as they spoke this time. Their brain had already prepared all the needed questions and responses to almost all of Neha's possibles responses. Ivory had to do this perfectly otherwise she will just end up confused and even more lost than before on what to do for this paper. "In the most likely experience, if you do not know if you experienced true love, then I will just assume you do not know the true meaning of love either."

Ivory's position changes one more time and they are now resting their right elbow on their thigh while their right-hand holds their chin up. They look directly at Neha and straight at her eyes. This look that Ivory was giving her, it reminded her of when she locked eyes with them during the exam. Yet, there was a major difference to what she was feeling before. The feeling of being awkward and embarrassed was no longer there but replaced with a feeling of pure comfort. Neha felt like staring for ages back at the person in front of her. The sultry, passionate way the look Ivory gave her felt like it was making her melt. Their long eyelashes and mole slightly under their eye made her curious. Kisoo was curious about why and how Ivory did things but Neha was curious about Ivory as a person. 

Ivory spoke, keeping eye contact with Neha. "Love is an overwhelming feeling that most think they understand, but in reality, the concept of love is too vast in my opinion. How can we try to understand something so deep, so beautiful, and so interpersonal when we can barely understand ourselves? It just does not make sense. Love is not something that is meant to make sense in my eyes. It is an adventure full of trials and tribulations, it is a journey full of discovery and change, and it is an ocean that causes us to drown under the pressure. It is so much more as well! It is so abundant that we can barely put it into words. All of what I am saying leads me to tell you, love is a catalyst. Despite all of the definitions one may have for love, it remains a catalyst. A catalyst for what? I cannot tell. However, if there is one thing I can be certain of, love changes. Neha, let me be your cayatlst. Neha my dear, let me be your reason for change. Let me be your lover."


End file.
